posted 01-14-2016 07:57 PM
While I am glad to see SNC added to the field, does anyone know when they expect their Dream Chaser cargo variant will actually (test) launch on rockets?

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 01-14-2016 10:14 PM
Sierra Nevada said recently on Twitter that they were waiting for today's award before setting dates:

Still on for Atlas V launch, dependent on NASA CRS-2 award that will set dates and more. Stay tuned!

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 01-15-2016 03:47 PM
Sierra Nevada held a press conference today to discuss their plans. I missed notice of it but AmericaSpace covered it:

Dream Chaser development will follow the example of Space Shuttle Columbia, STS-1. All the testing and certifications will happen on the ground and within the atmosphere, the first Dream Chaser launch will be an operational mission for NASA under the CRS-2 contract to the ISS. SNC will benefit from 135 shuttle flights and modern testing techniques to ready Dream Chaser for that first mission, and the company says Dream Chaser will be ready for that flight atop a ULA Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral, Fla. in the first half of 2019.

NASA does not require a first orbital flight test for the Dream Chaser cargo version before its first operational CRS-2 flight.

SkyMan1958Member

Posts: 752From: CA.Registered: Jan 2011

posted 01-15-2016 05:29 PM
The video states (twice) that the ship is capable of ISS reboost. I thought the propulsion system was in the stern of the vehicle, and in the video, the stern is pointed towards the ISS. Does anyone know how the Dream Chaser would reboost the ISS?

Secondly, one of the sales points is reusability. Does anyone know how many times the Dream Chaser will be reusable? Does anyone know how this compares to the Dragon? (I realize that per NASA rules the cargo Dragon is only used as a one and done vehicle, but theoretically it could be reused.) Is NASA also going to do a one and done with the cargo Dream Chaser?

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 01-15-2016 07:40 PM
SNC says Dream Chaser can fly a minimum of 15 times (with 90 percent component reusability). SpaceX's Crew Dragon, which NASA implied was going to be adapted for cargo under CRS-2, can be re-flown 10 times, per SpaceX.

As for Dream Chaser's re-boost capability, I haven't seen any details released by SNC, but it could be they use the nose mounted RCS thrusters.

SkyMan1958Member

Posts: 752From: CA.Registered: Jan 2011

posted 01-15-2016 11:04 PM
Thank you Robert!

mercsimMember

Posts: 204From: Phoenix, AZRegistered: Feb 2007

posted 01-16-2016 09:02 PM
Nose RCS thrusters seem unlikely to be used for that. They would be a pretty small force for such a large mass. They would have to fire for a REALLY long time and consume a lot of fuel that probably isn't carried in the RCS system.

Just because they did it in a movie (Space Cowboys), doesn't mean its technically practical.

alanh_7Member

Posts: 1245From: Ajax, Ontario, CanadaRegistered: Apr 2008

posted 01-17-2016 10:14 AM
Speculation on my part, but perhaps there is some sort of re-boost system idea that is compatible with Dream Chaser and the ISS like NASA was considering for the Shuttle/Skylab program.

domMember

Posts: 761From: Registered: Aug 2001

posted 01-17-2016 11:39 AM
Interesting to see illustrations online of the Dream Chaser on top of an Ariane 5. Very fitting considering ESA's cancelled Hermes space shuttle would have flown on that booster. Is this a serious concept or just clever marketing?

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 01-17-2016 12:09 PM
In 2014, SNC entered partnerships with ESA and DLR to study uses of the Dream Chaser for European missions.

In 2015, together with OHB System AG, the company completed the initial Dream Chaser for European Utilization study co-funded by the Space Administration of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and OHB.

So while there are no active programs to fly Dream Chaser on Ariane, the concept is more than just a marketing graphic.

domMember

Posts: 761From: Registered: Aug 2001

posted 01-17-2016 01:35 PM
Apparently SNC adopted the folding wings configuration at the suggestion of ESA so it could fly on Ariane 5.

Looks like the company is keeping its options open!

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 01-25-2016 08:13 AM
ESA will invest $36 million into the development of the Dream Chaser and build the first flight model of the vehicle's docking mechanism, SpaceNews reports.

...ESA will begin work building the first flight model of the International Berthing and Docking Mechanism (IBDM), which Sierra Nevada's Dream Chaser Cargo System will use to attach itself to the space station.

ESA said it would spend 33 million euros ($36 million) to complete the design of the IBDM and build a flight model for Dream Chaser's first cargo run. Future IBDMs will be financed by Sierra Nevada, ESA said.

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 04-01-2016 09:03 AM
Huntsville, Alabama is "the only community" where Sierra Nevada is planning to land its Dream Chaser spaceship anytime soon, the Huntsville Times reports, citing company officials.

"There was a leap of faith on the Huntsville side that we would be a company that could get this vehicle built and start servicing the space station...," Sierra Nevada Vice President John Roth said Thursday. "Yes, we have been approached by other airports for ventures. We're not moving forward at this time with any of those. Right now, Huntsville is the only community we're moving forward with a (landing) license on."

A preliminary local study identified four hurdles to landing Dream Chaser at the Huntsville International Airport: required licenses for the craft and airport, environmental impact approval, Federal Aviation Administration approval of the landing path and possible runway damage.

"We've found nothing that would indicate those items are not satisfactory for going forward," Huntsville International Airport Director of Operations Kevin Vandeberg said.

Interesting wording, "the only community." I'm assuming Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility is not considered to be within a community for the sake of this distinction.

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 08-29-2017 12:38 PM
Sierra Nevada will hold a Q&A and stream part of its Dream Chaser captive carry test live on Facebook on Wednesday (Aug. 30).

Grab a coffee and join us for a Facebook Live event from NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center for our Dream Chaser spacecraft's captive carry flight.

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 08-30-2017 11:29 AM
From Sierra Nevada on Facebook:

Thanks for watching our Facebook Live! More video of the Captive Carry event to come.

posted 09-01-2017 12:46 PM
Aside from whatever reasons NASA thumbed down the crew version I think it's a cool little hotrod! It had my vote for selection, naive as it may have been.

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 11-11-2017 08:24 PM
From Sierra Nevada Corporation on Twitter:

SNC is proud to announce the Dream Chaser spacecraft had a successful free-flight test today at Edwards Air Force Base, with support of NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center. The Dream Chaser had a beautiful flight and landing!

On Monday, SNC will share more information, photos and video from today's Dream Chaser free-flight test at Edwards Air Force Base.

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 11-13-2017 04:29 PM
Video of the test flight:

lspoozMember

Posts: 349From: Greensboro, NC USARegistered: Aug 2012

posted 11-13-2017 04:44 PM
Great video, but wow, only ~55 seconds from drop to landing, and from only 8000 feet is a pretty short time to handle all that, much quicker than the ALT work with the shuttle.

SkyMan1958Member

Posts: 752From: CA.Registered: Jan 2011

posted 11-13-2017 06:09 PM
Huh, I had never before noticed the offset "rudder" just starboard of the centerline. Does anyone know if this is the actual configuration for the spacecraft, or something temporary for the drop tests?

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 11-13-2017 07:46 PM
If you're referring the small vertical stabilizer, then yes, it is part of the final configuration, as represented in this artist concept.

apolloprojecktMember

Posts: 1365From: arnhem netherlands Registered: Feb 2009

posted 02-08-2018 06:16 AM
This system will be folded wings?

Robert PearlmanEditor

Posts: 39341From: Houston, TXRegistered: Nov 1999

posted 04-18-2018 04:01 PM
As Sierra Nevada Corporation (SNC) prepares its Dream Chaser cargo vehicle for a first launch on an Atlas 5 in late 2020, the company expects to make a decision by the end of this year on the rocket that will launch later missions, SpaceNews reports.

SNC announced a contract with ULA in July 2017 that covered two Dream Chaser launches, in 2020 and 2021. Both would use the Atlas 5 552, the largest version of the Atlas 5 with a five-meter payload fairing, five solid rocket boosters and a dual-engine Centaur upper stage.

However, Sirangelo said the company was looking at other options for launching the second and later Dream Chaser ISS cargo missions. "It's a quite interesting time in the launch business, where we see all the major launch companies coming out with a new launch system," he said. "We are looking at all of the launch systems."

...he noted that there are no requirements under its NASA contract that require those cargo missions to fly on U.S. vehicles, citing NASA's use of European and Japanese cargo vehicles to resupply the ISS. "We think it's certainly feasible," he said, adding that there was interest in launching Dream Chaser on vehicles outside the U.S.

PearsonNew Member

Posts: 9From: OhioRegistered: Jul 2015

posted 05-09-2018 10:52 AM

quote:Originally posted by damnyankee36:Aside from whatever reasons NASA thumbed down the crew version I think it's a cool little hotrod!

I agree, I like the Dream Chaser and the way it looks. Don't know why NASA first shelved it when they was developing it, then shelve it again after passing it off to Sierra Nevada. Hopefully another space agency will utilize the crew variant.